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If a chocolate chip cookie recipe calls for two eggs and I add three eggs, what will the effect be on my cookies?

Likewise if it calls for two eggs and I only put in one egg what will the effect be?

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Eggs contribute to better texture, leavening and they extend shelf life. More eggs = moister (sp!) cookie. Eggs are also crucial in building structure. They are about 75% moisture, 12% protein, 10% fat and 2ish % sugar.

The white provides strength, stability and moisture.

Yolks, where all of the fat is in an egg, increase richness, tenderness and flavor.

Therefore, if you put an extra egg, you will get a chewier cookie. I do it all the time. If you put less, you will get a more crumbly cookie.

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    Another trick is to use extra large or jumbo eggs, even though most recipes call for large. There is only about 10-15% more egg 'stuff' per egg, but it can make your baked goods a little moister without making the dough too gooey. My mother does this all the time, and we all know Mom's cookies are the best. I usually just have large eggs around the house for various reasons, but using larger eggs has never been a problem in my experience.
    – JSM
    Jun 5, 2014 at 17:23
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    My take is that eggs will promote a SOFTER cookie, not necessarily a CHEWIER cookie. Soft cookies and chewy cookies are not the same. Soft means a slightly more cake-like texture. Chewy has more substance to it; takes longer to chew! Neither is crumbly or hard. I wonder if others agree.
    – Arlo
    Apr 16, 2019 at 19:12
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I think if doubling the batch of chocolate chip cookies, one should also add egg whites to lend stability and hold cookie together. Too few eggs will make dough crumbly.

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The more eggs, the more cakelike a brownie or cake recipe will become.
The less eggs, the more moist and dense it will be.
Eggs cause fluffiness.

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    Nope. Whipped egg whites (or even whipped whole eggs, to some degree) add fluffiness, sure. But just stirred/beaten into the other ingredients? They add fat and moisture, and they're not adding any air. They're not going to make a cookie fluffy.
    – Cascabel ♦
    Nov 13, 2013 at 22:18
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    and generally in cookies, flour contributes to a cake-like texture. Whole eggs generally make a cookie chewier.
    – SourDoh
    Nov 14, 2013 at 0:42
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    This is not a forum, answers should be standing on their own ground to the original question, not interjections against other answers.
    – Lars Viklund
    Jan 8, 2015 at 20:32
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    @LarsViklund Yes, it starts with "wrong" and obviously was replying to something. But it also makes a specific claim about what the answer to the question is (eggs make things cakelike and fluffy), so it is also certainly an answer.
    – Cascabel ♦
    Jan 8, 2015 at 21:03
  • Perhaps editing to remove the "wrong" portion would be appropriate? That would make this a stand-alone complete answer. pdavidson could then separately "Reply" with a Comment to the answer he thought was "wrong".
    – SherylHohman
    May 6, 2020 at 18:31

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